Friday, May 29, 2009

This week has been a super hectic week for me. Why? Let me give you a run down: Just got back from vacation on Monday, went market to buy groceries (my fridge is empty), meet up with both my kids' teachers for mid-term progress report, meet up with friend to make moon cake, buy presents for MIL for her coming birthday this weekend, buy gifts for my girls' teachers for their party on Friday, also bought some presents for my friends' daughter's birthday. Then went to 2 bakery supply stores to stock up my supplies (one of them don't carry some of the stuff I want!). Got stuck in traffic for 1hr. Then planning and baking for 2 of my girl's school party on Friday, including cupcakes for kids and cookies for teachers. Cut and trim my girls' hair (yes, mummy also the barber)before school holiday. Attend the final session of a marriage enrichment course with my husband. Practice with my girl for her coming piano concert next month. Not forgetting my daily chauffeuring of my girls to and fro to school, extra classes like speech and drama, piano. Going through their homework(everyday). Of course, cook, bake and blog. *phew!*

Sorry if I'm nagging too much, but that's basically what's going on with me this week. Well, I am very sure there are lot's of mummies (or daddies) out there that are going through the same thing as me, so all I can say is "Hang on buddy!", haha. But through it all, I thoroughly enjoyed everything I did, and being busy is not all that bad (maybe the lack of sleep part I can forgo) , I felt that I really utilized my time. ;) But one thing's for sure, being a home maker ain't no easy peasy job too!Anyway, back to today's post. I made a fruit tart, i.e. Kiwi & Blueberry with Mascarpone Cream tart. I have been wanting to make a proper fruit tart for some time now (not the mini kind), just did not find the right time to do it. And since last night was the last session of our marriage enrichment course, I thought it'll be nice to bring it there to share with all my good friends.

I got the recipe from "Essential of Baking" from William Sonoma. The recipe uses strawberries, but I wanted to try something different, so I opted for the golden kiwi (sweeter then the green type) and blueberries. I halved the recipe since my tart pan is only 7" size.

Sift together flour, confectioner's sugar and salt. Scatter the cold butter over the flour mixture and rub in with your fingertips or fork until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Beat in the egg yolk and knead well till combine. Add the heavy cream and mix till it comes together to form a soft dough. If too moist, add a pinch of flour, too dry a little more cream.

Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in fridge for at least 1 hr.

Roll out the dough between two plastic wrap to a flat disc to about 1 to 2" wider then the circumference of your tart pan.

Carefully without breaking it, place the dough over the tart pan and gently ease the outer edges of the pa the pan, allowing the extra dough to flop over the sides. Repeat around the entire circumference of the pan and careful not to over stretch the dough.

Using a kitchen sears, trim away the edges, leaving about 1/2inch overhang.

Fold in the overhang into the edges of the pan, creating a double thickness to reinforce the sides of the tart crust. Freeze it for 30 minutes before baking.

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Line the frozen tart with aluminum foil, making sure to press the foil into the fluted edges of the crust.

Fill the foil-lined crust with either dried beans or uncooked rice. Then bake in the oven until dries out, about 15minutes. Check to see if the crust is ready by pulling one corner of the foil. If the foil sticks, the crust is not ready. Return it into the oven and bake for another 2 minutes. Carefully remove the weights and foil, then reduce the temperature to 180°C.

Return the partially baked crust into the oven to bake for another 10 to 12 minutes till all golden brown. Transfer on to wire rack to cool completely before use.

Note that mascarpone cheese is not our usual Philadelphia cream cheese. It's actually a tripe-cream cheese derived from crème fraîche, denatured with tartaric acid. It's lighter, and it smells like milk and cream, a very good compliment in fruit tarts.

In a large bowl, combine the mascarpone cheese, cream, confectioner's sugar, and vanilla using a mixer, beat at medium spead till light and creamy, about 2 minutes.

Scoop the filling into the prebaked tart shell and spread evenly with spatula.

To assemble, heat up the jam for 5 to 10 seconds in the microwave. Carefully line the fruits on the tart as desired and galzed the fruits with the warm jam.

Cover and chill tart until cold or up to 1 day. Unmold and serve cold.

The tart shell is rich and buttery, like eating a shortbread cookie, still fresh after one day in the fridge. The filling is creamy and not too sweet, went very well with the fresh fruits on top, an excellent and elegant desert to serve after dinner.When I was leaving for my marriage enrichment course, my girls marveled at the tart and asked for a slice. So I cut out a quarter of the tart for them, haha! Luckily my friends did not mind and they still enjoyed it after eating all the other yummy food during our supper. ;DI was so glad I still managed to make this tart for my friend despite that busy schedule of mine, because food taste so much better when shared with your friends and love ones. ;)

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Have been away with some friends to Penang on a "makan" trip over the weekend (yeah again, haha). If you ask me, it's still as enjoyable or even better this time round in Penang. Every time I leave the island, I always feel that I have not tried enough of the delicious food there and wished that I had made plans to stay longer, haha! Anyway, that will be in another post. Now I am frantically trying to catch up on my post and also trying to bake some bread at the same time! The bread menu of the week is this super-soft egg loaf that I happen to stumble upon while I was browsing this Taiwanese blog. The ingredients looks easy enough, plus the bread looks really yummy, so I decided to give this recipe a try. :)

Mix all ingredients except butter in a large mixing bowl to form a soft dough. Knead the dough till it is not sticky, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Add the unsalted butter in and continue to knead till the dough is shiny and elastic. To test if the dough is ready, pull a small piece off and stretching it with your fingers. If dough is very elastic and pulls to almost see through without breaking, then it's done.

Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof for at least 90 minutes to 2hrs.

Punch out the air in the dough and divide it into 3 equal portions.

Roll out each portion into a long flat oval shape and roll up one end to make it into a swiss roll form.

Placed the dough into a greased loaf tin and repeat with the rest of the 2 portions.

Cover and let proof for another 2hrs or till the loaf fills 90% of the tin.

Preheat the oven to 170°C.

Bake loaf in the oven for 40 to 45 minutes. If top browns too quickly, cover with aluminum till baking time is up.

When done, take out from oven and unmold immediately and let cool on rack before slicing.

I must be a little crazy, it' was already closing to midnight and I was still waiting for the bread to finish baking?! I guess I should have time my baking properly so I can finish up before my bedtime! :-P But when the bread comes out fresh from the oven, time does not matter anymore! The whole house is filled with this fresh baked bread scent, priceless! Looking at the delicious soft loaf, I know my family will really enjoy this bread in the morning the next day. :)You would think that all that sugar and condensed milk is gonna make this bread way too sweet. Well guess again! It's not at all too sweet, but just nice enough to eat on it's own, prefecto!Heehee, but eating this bread sure makes me feel guilty, since it's relatively high in sugar and fat content! I guess the next time round, I should try to make something more healthful like whole wheat bread or something, haha!

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Have not made pancakes for my girls for the longest time now. Lately every weekend morning my husband and I will either be playing tennis or training for the coming KL marathon, which will normally be followed up by breakfast on our own at the nearby coffee place. Hence we seldom eat breakfast with our girls during weekend mornings. So bad! Okay okay, that's why I was pretty determine to make it for them while I'm home last Saturday morning. This time,I added a little twist in the batter, not the usual pancake they eat, where I added 1/4 cup of sour cream, which turns out great! My girls raved about it and finished up their stack in no time! ;)

In a bowl, place all dry ingredients in, meaning flour, cake flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Stir well to blend everything together.

In a large mixing bowl, lightly beat the egg and add sour cream and stir well.

Heat up the milk and butter till almost boiling. Slowly drizzle and stir the milk mixture into egg mixture till everything is incorporated. Add vanilla and stir well.

Add the dry mixture into the egg mixture and stir till just combined. Over mixing the batter will not yield nice fluffy pancakes.

Heat up a pan with some butter or cooking oil at medium low heat.

Scoop desired amount of batter into the pan. Then top the batter with 3 to 4 slices of banana and sprinkle some chocolate chips. Then using a small heatproof teaspoon, making sure the chocolate is inside the batter, else it will burn after flipping the pancake.

Cook about 2 to 3 minutes per side till golden brown and crisp. Remove from pan and serve with maple syrup and butter, yummy!

If any of you worry about the sour cream giving it a sour taste, not at all! It actually contribute to it's light texture. These pancakes are so light and fluffy, with the bananas so soft and sweet, plus the chocolate all melted in, a perfect combination! The crispy sides is such a treat to eat too! And even if you don't serve with maple syrup, it's still delicious on it's own. I think I can eat this every morning! ;D

When my girls finished their breakfast that day, they were already asking me if they will be having these pancakes again tomorrow, haha! And since I made quite a lot, the 2 left overs are still good even when it's not heated up. My elder daughter goggle up another one for snack in the afternoon too. ;)I guess I should try to make these yummy breakfast treat for my girls more often....it's already worth every trouble when you see they enjoying a delicious home made breakfast you make just for them. ;D

Friday, May 22, 2009

I am sure everyone has decisions to make everyday in their lives. Whether it is BIG or small , the outcome may just be a life altering turn for us. Okay, I am not talking about choosing eggs or toast for breakfast kind of thing here, but decisions like to continue a career path or choosing the education system for the children or even to sell or rent your house etc. Lately my husband and I are under major pressure on making such decisions. *sigh* It's so haunting for me that I could hardly sleep in some nights or even wake up in the middle of the night thinking about it! I know, some people will be like "Heck it! Live life as it comes man!" But seriously, I can't. I believe life is what you make it and the choices you make everyday. Furthermore I'm that kind of person that thinks too much into things and slightly paranoia.

Deep in my heart, I know no matter how much I hate coming to a final decision, it will still involve heartaches and loss. *sigh* So I pray everyday, hoping everything will turn out for the best, no matter which path we choose.....so please give me strength!!

Sorry for been so "heavy-hearted" today, but these issues have been bothering me and I just need to let it out, thanks for patiently staying on and reading my problems. ;) Anyway, I should probably get on with my post and not bore everyone any longer! ;-PToday I really needed some major comfort food....need I say more my friend? It's none other then the classic rich, fudgy chocolate brownie, THE best remedy for anxiety, lack of sleep and indecisiveness, haha!I extracted this recipe fromEssential of Baking from William Sonoma,but made changes to it to suit my taste buds. ;)

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Butter, then line with parchment and butter again a 8inch by 8inch square baking tin.

Place the chocolate and butter in the top of a double boiler placed over barely simmering water. Heat, stirring often until the butter and chocolate has melted. Remove and let cool.

In a large mixing bow, beat eggs, sugar, vanilla and salt till well blended.

Sprinkle all of the flour over the egg mixture and stir till everything is incorporated.

Stir in chocolate chips and stir well.

Pour batter into prepare tin and bake in the oven for 30 to 33 minutes. Do not over bake as it will become dry and the cake will not yield a fudgy texture.

Remove from oven and leave on rack to cool before slicing. Enjoy!

I have opt to cut the cake into nice little heart shapes because it looks real nice instead of the boring old squares. Don't worry, me and my hubby ate up most of the crumby sides, haha! Nothing goes to waste here I tell you. ;)Bittting into one of these rich, chocolaty cake really transport me far away from my troubles...well at least for that few minutes, haha! Okay, I'm not that kind of people that likes to run away from problems, but being able to enjoy that few moments of blissfulness is sweet! It's really quite heavenly, my kind of comfort food! Try it and you will know what I mean. ;)

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Just a few days back, a good friend of mine bought me a packet of seaweed pork floss and a packet of Ba Kua(BBQ pork jerky) each. Thank you so much EP! I was totally delighted as the pork floss and Ba Kua was really yummy! First of all, I have not tasted seaweed pork floss before and after eating it then I realize what I have been missing out! As for the Ba Kua , it was excellent too! It's flavorful, tender and very lean (cannot find any white fatty part)! Furthermore, it was not badly charred but nicely BBQ too. Both really good eating on it's own of course, but when combined with bread, it's another level of "delicacy", haha!

Then my friend gave me the idea of making buns with them, so I tell myself, why not! ;D I searched through 孟老师的100道面包 to find a suitable bread recipe to go with the pork ingredients and decided on a hot dog bun recipe. I doubled the original recipe to accommodate the variety of buns I want to bake. I also baked some mini hot dog buns just to try out the original recipe.

Mix all ingredients in Set A in a large mixing bowl to form a soft dough. Knead the dough till it is not sticky, about 20 minutes or more.

Add the unsalted butter in and continue to knead till the dough is shiny and elastic. To test if the dough is ready, pull a small piece off and stretching it with your fingers. If dough is very elastic and pulls to almost see through without breaking, then it's done.

Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof for at least 90 minutes.

Punch out the air in the dough and divide it into 10 equal portions. Two of the portions, divide into 2 again, this is for the mini hot dogs, if you are using normal size hot dog then this step can skip. Roll into balls and cover to let rest for 5 minutes.

For the hot dog buns, take one of the dough balls and roll flat into a disc. Place the hot dog in the center and seal the edges. Roll it nicely so that the dough cover evenly. Using a kitchen sears, snip 3 slits all the way through the hot dog but not the dough and twist 3 sections so that the inside of the hot dog is facing upwards, like a flower when done. Drizzle some ketchup over the top of the bun.

For the Ba Kua buns, roll the dough ball into a flat oval, place the Ba Kua at one end and start rolling it up in the dough and seal the edge.

For the pork floss, roll the dough into a flat oval disc and roll up from one end without any filling and seal the edges tightly.

Place all the buns on a parchment lined baking tray and cover to proof for another 25 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 180. Brush the surface of the buns with egg wash.

Bake the buns in the oven for 18 minutes or till light golden brown. When done, remove the buns from the tray and cool on the rack.

To assemble the pork floss buns, use a sharp knife and slice length wise down but not all the way through. Spread 1 tsp of the transparent mayo evenly on the cavity sides. Then spread another 1 tsp of mayo on the surface top of the bun and sprinkle generously the pork floss over the top of the bun to cover the mayo.

Note: I will not be posting the recipe for the transparent mayo since the recipe does not originate from me.

Turns out the pork floss buns tasted the best! The bread was super soft and goes really well with the mayo and pork floss, Ichiban! The mayo has really moisten the pork floss and not at all soggy so it makes the bun really easy to eat and tasty! The Ba Kua buns were great too, the oven heat did not dry out the meat as I baked mine @ 170°C for 15 minutes then increase it to 180°C for the last 5 minutes.I know, in the midst of the swine flu going on now, we should be extra careful on our pork in take. Just be watchful of uncooked meat. And sometimes, you just can't let good food go to waste! For my case, these yummy pork floss and Ba Kua! So next time when you have some left over pork floss or Ba Kua, don't let it seat there in your pantry to dry up. Try to make some yummy buns for your family to enjoy, I'm very sure they will appreciate it very much! ;) Oink-oink! (Oops!)

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Choux paste, profiteroles or eclairs, you can call them either way, it's such a light , delicate and wonderful desert. To me, it some how has that French flair in it. And personally, I find the name so classy too, haha. Whether you serve it sweet or savory, these puffs compliments the filling beautifully. On it's own, the taste is very subtle and not at all "eggy". This time round, I decided to make the all classic cream filled chocolate eclairs. This is one of those recipes that I have been holding off for the longest time to bake and blog about. Frankly speaking, this is not my first time baking these puffs, just haven't bake them since I started blogging. :) Part of the reason why I'm making them today was because a family member has requested for this recipe, so here it is V. ;)

Making a choux paste can be a little tricky if you have never attempted it before. Reason being the texture of of the dough need to be in the right consistency, else it will not puff or even not getting the correct taste texture which means not as delicate.So the best remedy is the keep trying it out and practice makes perfect if you did not get it right the first time.

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk, water, butter and salt and bring to a full boil. When the butter melts, remove the pan from heat and add the flour all at once, stiring vigorously with a woonden spoon till blened.

Continue stiring till the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and forms a ball. Let cool for 3-4 minutes or till 140°C on the themometer.

Meanwhile in a small bowl, whisk 1 egg and add to the cooled mixture. Stir vigorously to combine. Add the remainding 3 eggs one at a time till all is incoroporated. After adding each egg, the mixture might separate ans appear shiny, no worries, just stir continuously to combine.

The correct consistency of the dough should be when you lift the dough with your spoon, it pulls and slowly breaks and forms a slow bending peak.

Spoon the batter into a big piping bag with a round tip of at least 8mm, else simply snip of the end of the piping bag to create a round opening.

Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Pipe the dough onto a parchment lined baking tray. You can do logs or puffs, making sure each dough is at least 2 to 3 cm apart from each other.

Brush the surface of the dough with egg wash.

Proceed to bake the puffs in the oven at 200°C for 15minutes, then reducing the temperature to 180°C for another 15 minutes or till golden brown.

Remove from oven and immediately prick the side of each puff or log with a sharp knife.

Return the puffs to the oven (already off), leaving the open and allow the pastries to dry out for 10 minutes.

Let the puffs cool on the rack completely before piping in the filling.

For the filling, simply whipped all the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl till stiff peaks and spoon into piping bag.

For the ganache topping, heat up the milk in a saucepan till almost boiling. Then pour over the chopped chocolate and butter and let seat for 5 minutes before stirring. When time, stir till mixture is smooth. Make sure the ganache is in a wide bowl for easy dipping.

Dip the top of the puffs into the ganache and let cool in fridge to harden the chocolate.

When the chocolate has set, piped the whipped cream into the puffs and serve! Yum-o!

A shot of the puff being bitten by my younger daughter, haha! I know I know, it's messy...but OMG, its so yummy! It's so light yet rich and creamy, the puff has the right texture and goes so well with the ganache and cream....sinfully good!My younger daughter ate 4 of these small eclair logs!Why are you still seating there? Yes, go! Go make some for yourself now! Enjoy!

Monday, May 18, 2009

Before I go into my post today, I shall share a little "sad" story with you. Yesterday I met up with another fellow blogger cum neighbor cum good friend to do some bread baking. And we intent to bake Roti boy (AKA coffee buns). She had made her choice to bake the recipe from Yochana's Delight and I chose Kitchen Corner's Coffee Buns. We both agreed that we will both make the buns and see which one turns out nicer, sounds fun right? And since my friends' dough finished proofing much eariler then mine, we made her buns first. Unsurprisingly, it turn out great, the buns were nice and soft and the cheese filling was quite satisfying.

I was so looking forward to mine, as I much prefer the butter filling, just like those selling at the bakeries. Well, I wasn't sure was it my shaping skill or am I too greedy on filling too much butter into the dough....the filling oozed out during the baking and the whole scene in the ovenwas......."TRAGIC"!! Okay, call me drama queen, but I was so devastated....after all that kneading, waiting to proof, shaping and then....BUSTED! O well....I guess I have only have myself to blame...'cos KC's buns turned out so nice! Anyway, I was too "depressed" to take any pictures...you'll have to imagine how "ugly" they look, haha. But you know what, it's still yummy....I guess it's one of those I'm ugly but I'm very yummy bakes of mine.Anyway, back to today's post. I decided to make Tomato Cheese Buns today. Reason was I have these 2 huge tomatoes siting at my counter and ripening away and I just could not bare to letting it go to waste. Luckily I found this recipe in 孟老师的100道面包 and I never looked back. ;) Best part? It did not bust, haha!

Mix all ingredients in Set A in a large mixing bowl to form a soft dough. Knead the dough till it is not sticky, about 20 minutes.

Add the unsalted butter in and continue to knead till the dough is shiny and elastic. To test if the dough is ready, pull a small piece off and stretching it with your fingers. If dough is very elastic and pulls to almost see through without breaking, then it's done.

Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof for at least 90 minutes.

Punch out the air in the dough and divide it into 5 equal portions. Roll into balls and cover to let rest for 5 minutes.

Take one dough ball, roll out flat into a disc and place 1/5 of the sharp cheddar cheese in the middle and seal the edges tight. Place bun on baking tray lined with parchment. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls.

Gently press down the buns so it flattens a little and cover to let proof for another 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Brush the bun tops with egg wash.

Placed the Kraft sandwich cheese on top of the buns and then the sliced tomatoes. Sprinkle some parsley and black pepper over the top.

Bake the buns in the oven for 18 to 20minutes, till the cheese melted and the are light brown on the sides.

Remove from oven and cool on rack.

The buns were soft and it taste real good....almost like eating a cheese pizza! The tomato on top was still juicy and sweet and the sharp cheddar in the bun compliments the taste even more! The only regret was not putting some ham in the buns, that will really make it even yummier! You can even replace the sharp cheddar with mozzarella to make it into a pizza bun, how great is that....meal in a bun, haha! Do try it out, you won't regret it. ;)

Thursday, May 14, 2009

My little ones has been asking me for something yummy to eat. And since for the past week I did not really bake anything to satisfy their sweet tooth, I decided to be a good mommy and get down to work. But the dilemma came when both of my girls asked for different things! I'm sure that happens to all you mommies out there that has more then 1 child. My elder girl wants mini butter cupcakes with flower icing. My younger girl ask for chocolate cake with chocolate chips. I really cannot think of any recipe that can satisfy both, so I ended up making both!For the mini butter cupcakes, I used a butter cake recipe from Reesekitchen. The texture of the cake is really good, light and fluffy, not at all denseand furthermore the rich butter taste was veryevident. ;)Excellent!

For the flora icing, I merely use basic butter cream and tinted it with different colors. The best part is, watching my girl downing these cuppies 4 in a row! ;) Yippee!

And since I did not want to make cupcakes again, I ended up making a chocolate swiss roll with whipped cream topped with chocolate rice. This recipe is adapted from one of my favorite bloggers, Corner Cafe again. Thanks for sharing! However I modified her recipe to create a chocoalate sponge cake. Here'is my recipe for easy reference in future.

To the mixture, add the egg yolks, stir well after each yolk has been added. Set aside

Preheat oven to 180°C. Butter a baking tray of about 10cm by 14cm. Line with parchment paper and butter the top of the parchment paper.

Beat egg whites with salt until foamy. Continue to beat the egg whites and slowly add the sugar to it. Beat till mixture is stiff peaks.

Gently fold in the egg whites to the flour mixture in 3 portions. Making sure most of the white is not visible after folding.

Pour cake batter into prepared tray and bake at 180°C for 15 mins. Then lower the temperature to 170°C and bake for another 5 mins.

When done, remove cake from oven and immediately remove from baking tray. Let cool on rack for 5 mins. Then using another parchment or clean kitchen towel, flip the cake over and peel off the parchment paper. Continue to let cool for another 15 minutes.

In the meantime, prepare the filling. Whipped the cream with the confectioner's sugar and vanilla extract till firm peaks.

Spread 1/2 of the whipping cream on the cooled cake and roll up from short side. Kept it roll up in the parchmant / kitchen towel till the cake is "stable".

Spread the remainding cream on the log and sprinkle chocolate rice all over. Slice and serve! ;)

All packed to be brought over to a gathering. Thought I share with my friends since they like swiss rolls like me and my girl. ;)

Some how when I look at it, it gives me such nostalgic feelings! I remember when I was young, it was such a treat for me when my mom would buy these chocolate rice swiss roll cakes for us! I wish my girls can remember these delicious treats and think of their mommy(me) next time whenever they come upon it by chance. ;)

Looking for something yummy?

About Me

Welcome to my humble food blog. I have always love food, glorious food! Now that I am happily married and staying home with 2 kids, cooking has become a big part of my life. What can I say, I'm in my "zone" while cooking/baking. And better yet, is to share these food with my friends & love ones.